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pimoon's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Such an endearing story, it was so nice to read and become absorbed by this book. The characters were fantastic and the themes of grief were dealt with in such a refreshing way that wasn't confronting at all.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
hello_lovely13's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Death
sakisreads's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
This was a Book Club read and I WISH the friend that had chosen it had given me some warnings š« Iām going to include content warnings below, so you donāt have to feel the way I did or read it if you donāt want to!
This book is about the Bell Gardia phone box in Otsuchi. Obviously itās a very touching story, but tinged with grief and sadness š„²
The story in itself felt a bit disconnected; we kept jumping to different peoplesā perspectives and it kept hard to enjoy at times because of that. Itās also why Iām giving it 3 stars āØ
However, I loved the characters! I felt attached almost right away, especially to Yui and Takeshi š„¹ Hana was also a firm favourite ā¤ļø
Thank you š„°
This book is about the Bell Gardia phone box in Otsuchi. Obviously itās a very touching story, but tinged with grief and sadness š„²
The story in itself felt a bit disconnected; we kept jumping to different peoplesā perspectives and it kept hard to enjoy at times because of that. Itās also why Iām giving it 3 stars āØ
However, I loved the characters! I felt attached almost right away, especially to Yui and Takeshi š„¹ Hana was also a firm favourite ā¤ļø
Thank you š„°
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, and Child death
sweetsxrrxw's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
this was an objectively good story and i think the author did a great job at portraying the complexity of grief, how it can change your life and connect people. even if you're not going through a grieving phase right now i think it will really make you sad or, at least, just feel hopeful about life.
there's so many things i liked about this book: how the phone booth realy exists, the author's writing style, the characters, the short chapters and the super short interludes between them... and i absolutely love how despite all of their pain, the characters eventually found something worth living for that allowed them to get over a huge tragedy.
however, i felt like at some point the story got kinda overwhelming and i was
just dragging myself to finish it, since sometimes the narration felt kinda confusing and easy to get unfocused by.
maybe it's not a book for everyone but there's many parts that make me believe it's a worthy read.
there's so many things i liked about this book: how the phone booth realy exists, the author's writing style, the characters, the short chapters and the super short interludes between them... and i absolutely love how despite all of their pain, the characters eventually found something worth living for that allowed them to get over a huge tragedy.
however, i felt like at some point the story got kinda overwhelming and i was
just dragging myself to finish it, since sometimes the narration felt kinda confusing and easy to get unfocused by.
maybe it's not a book for everyone but there's many parts that make me believe it's a worthy read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Child death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Death
Minor: Vomit
wordsofclover's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
When Yui loses her mother and daughter in a terrible natural disaster that strikes Japan, she feels lost and confused. She hears about a special phone box in a country village which people use to talk to their dead loved ones, and she travels there, striking up a friendship with Takeshi who lost his wife.
This is a very quiet, sweet novel that showcases the powerful human ability of moving on despite tremendous heartbreak and continuing to find the lovely things in life. I listened to this on audiobook and it was a lovely, relaxing read. Despite the very sad moments in this when we learn about the extent of Yui's loss, as well as Takeshi's and Hannah's and numerous other characters who come in and out of the story, it remained fairly light-hearted.
This is a very quiet, sweet novel that showcases the powerful human ability of moving on despite tremendous heartbreak and continuing to find the lovely things in life. I listened to this on audiobook and it was a lovely, relaxing read. Despite the very sad moments in this when we learn about the extent of Yui's loss, as well as Takeshi's and Hannah's and numerous other characters who come in and out of the story, it remained fairly light-hearted.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Death, Death of parent, and Child death
zainj_'s review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
leontyna's review against another edition
I liked the concept but the story in audio form was confusing and each time I went back to it, I didn't know what was going on.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
maddiela's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, and Child death
beautifullytess's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Child death and Death of parent
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
lainey_sherman3's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This books reminded me of the foreign film āPahunaā or a Studio Ghibli film. Though nothing action packed happened, the flow of the book was really nice. It had a lot of deep things to say and I love all the little details she added from the Glossary of Japanese words, the preface of the language, the background of the wind phone, and the short chapters in between that gave you a glimpse to the characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Child death, Death, and Death of parent